Food is Free is starting to gain traction in the South and will be doing a National launch in the coming months!
John Edwards, founder of Food is Free, who happens to also be of my alma mater, The University of Texas at Austin, has produced a very nifty non-profit organization whose mission is to grow food and community. Food is Free launched just six months ago and it is growing strong! Their mission states that “the Food is Free Project grows community and food, while helping gain independence from a broken agricultural system. The Food is Free Project is a community building and gardening movement that launched in January of 2012. We teach people how to connect with their neighbors and line their street with front yard community gardens which provide free harvests to anyone.”
Click on the lettuce patch below to watch their short video!
The Power of Community
Based out of Austin, Texas, Food is Free has built a program that can really be replicated anywhere. They take salvaged materials and organize campaigns within local communities to plant edible plant wicking gardens (garden beds which have piping that will enable a garden to self-water for up to four weeks). These gardens are all planted in the front yards throughout the neighborhood; the idea is that people will come together and build these gardens and share the produce that is grown. Food is Free’s founder has some fantastic quotes about sustainability and community building and the concept is such a neat collaborative idea.
